Tesla Unveils Mid-Size SUV: Model Y

The most-affordable Model Y will have a base price of $39,000 and a 230-mile battery range, but customers will have to wait until at least 2021 to own one of the five-seater SUVs. Tesla will first sell more expensive versions of the Model Y — with prices starting from $47,000 to $60,000, and offering more battery range. Those will ship starting in 2020, according to the company.There are additional charges for Tesla’s autopilot software, a third row of seats and colors other than black. A panoramic glass roof comes standard.

An enthusiastic Musk said on stage he expected Tesla to sell more Model Ys than Model 3s and Model Xs combined. Production of the SUV is supposed to begin next year.

But many questions remain unanswered about the Model Y, including where it will be manufactured and how fast Tesla can scale production to meet demand. Tesla has said previously it will likely build the Model Y at its Gigafactory in Nevada.

It took nearly three years after Tesla’s unveiling of the Model 3 before it sold for its promised price point of $35,000. Tesla’s timeline calls for a faster turnaround for the Model Y. The automaker has previously struggled to hit deadlines, and had a difficult time scaling Model 3 production.

“2018 felt like aging five years in one,” Musk said. “Honestly it was really intense.”

Musk devoted only five minutes of his 34-minute presentation to the new SUV. He spent the rest of the time recounting Tesla’s rise and recent history. Musk also joked about building supercharger stations in Kazakhstan, and said he expected a Tesla would be driving on Mars in 10 years.

Musk revealed that the Model Y had 66 cubic feet of cargo space, comparable to a Jeep Grand Cherokee. He said the Y would have the functionality of an SUV, but will ride like a sports car. Following Musk’s presentation, some attendees were given test drives in the Model Y.

Tesla is unveiling the Model Y as it goes through a rocky period. The SEC has asked for Musk to be charged with contempt for tweeting “inaccurate and material” information about the company. Key executives have left the company. Consumers Reports stopped recommending the Model 3. Multiple government agencies are investigating the recent death of a Model 3 owner in Florida. The circumstances of the crash bear a similarity to the passing of Joshua Brown, who died while using Autopilot. Tesla has also been criticized for its use of the term “full self-driving.”

But Musk spoke optimistically of Tesla’s autonomous driving software on Thursday, which will be available on the Model Y.

“It will be able to do basically anything by the end of this year, just with software upgrades,” Musk said.

[vemba-video id=”business/2019/03/15/tesla-unveils-new-model-y-lc-orig.cnn-business”] HAWTHORNE, Calif.— Tesla unveiled a new all-electric SUV on Thursday night that the automaker hopes will win over consumers looking for an all-electric alternative in the most popular segment of the auto market. Cheers from a hangar-packed crowd of Tesla customers, employees and members of the media welcomed a blue Model Y as […]

The newest offering from Tesla has seating for seven, a panoramic glass roof, and standard battery with 230 miles of range. The Model Y will have some get up and go, with the ability to go from 0 to 60 mph in 3.5 seconds and a top speed of 150, according to Tesla.

Tesla has lost more than $6 billion since setting out to revolutionize the auto industry 15 years ago, but Musk foresees a profitable future fueled in part by a ride-hailing service made up of electric cars driven by robots.

HAWTHORNE, Calif. — Tesla unveiled a new all-electric SUV on Thursday night that the automaker hopes will win over consumers looking for an all-electric alternative in the most popular segment of the auto market. Cheers from a hangar-packed crowd of Tesla customers, employees and members of the media welcomed a blue Model Y as it […]

PALO ALTO, Calif. — Tesla says it’s getting close to making the most important vehicle in its lineup: the Model Y. Last week, CEO Elon Musk announced Tesla will begin preparing for 2020 production of the mass market SUV. He expects work to begin sometime this year, and he predicted the Model Y would become […]

mukeshbalani.com | “You heard it here first…if you haven’t already heard it elsewhere”… Elon Musk: Tesla Will Unveil Model Y Next Week Model Y On Sunday, Elon Musk’s space company SpaceX made history by docking the first private American passenger spacecraft to the International Space Station. The same day, Musk announced big news about Tesla, his electric car company, on […]

Tesla CEO Elon Musk finished spelling out an all-electric acronym by lifting the veil on the Model Y, a crossover SUV that’s due to hit the market in the fall of 2020. “We are bringing ‘sexy’ back, quite literally,” he told hundreds of Tesla fans who gathered for the Hollywood-style unveiling at Tesla’s design studio […]